Switzerland and Mt. Pilatus

Switzerland has to be one of my favorite places I've been so far. It's so gorgeous, green and full of fresh mountain air.
Sometimes I can't believe I've even been there!
On my most recent trip to Europe with EF College Break, I had the opportunity to travel to Lucerne (which was one of our major stops). We actually stayed in Engelberg (here), which is about a 40 minute drive from the city of Lucerne.

Engelberg itself was a sight! Beautifully stationed in a mountain valley, we were able to hike around to view points to see the whole town, which was lovely! It being the spring season, it was a bit rainy and not very many people were in town during this time, which actually made it more pleasant in my book.

We got to meet Swiss cows and we eventually got to have dinner, which we chose a nice place where we could apparently only order pizza (since we arrived so late). Of course, I still got wine and my pizza was very good.

The next day, we started off by driving to Kreins where we hopped on gondolas to hoist us up the mountain side, to where the end would be the top of Mt. Pilatus.
The gondolas, a bit different from what you may be thinking of from Venice, are a bit sketchy, especially trekking up the side of a foggy mountain.

At the halfway point up the mountain, we were able to hop off and enjoy a ropes course they had there, fit with obstacles and multiple zip lines! This was probably my favorite thing we did on the trip, because it was so awesome to be able to say I've gone zip lining on a mountain in Switzerland!
We took about an hour or so to do this and while it did cost almost 30 extra euros to do, it was so worth it!

Onwards and upwards! We finally made it to the top and after much anxiety over timing, we got to eat a lovely cafeteria style lunch and take pictures from a great viewpoint there. It did not fall short of amazing and being on top of a Swiss mountain is probably one of the best feelings I've come across.

From the top, we took a cog wheel train to the bottom.

A bit steep, but we made it down in one piece, getting a glimpse of a little mountain goat on our way down as well!
At the bottom, we made our way to the boat we would take next (yes quite a journey on this day) which would take us around the lake and to Lucerne.

Once we made it to the city, everyone was ready to go and explore. There were places to get swiss army knives, clocks and watches, we fancied venturing to a nearby Swiss chocolate shop, which was delicious!
We also got a short tour and wandered to see the sights on our own for a bit.

If you didn't know this about Lucerne or maybe Switzerland in general (not entirely sure), they seem to have a lot of swans there! Swimming and lazing around by the edges where people are.
(Pictured above) The kettle bridge was a nice place to go across and we got to see old architecture mixed in with the new.

More walking led us to our bus that took our tired group back to our hostel. We had wanted to try some famous traditional fondue, but apparently that is only a thing they do in the winter sadly, so we missed out. We did however eat at a really amazing restaurant (I got their special lamb and orzo pasta, yum! Here.) We also tried to head out to a bar that night where we thought they were having a festival celebration for summer solstice, but it wasn't entirely busy and we ended up leaving, although it was a good time while it lasted!

I wouldn't have traded this trip for the world. It was entirely different than what I expected, in so many ways, but it was also exactly what I needed.
I made new friends, made a lot of memories, and got to travel to some pretty cool places.
I'm always ready for my next adventure and I already have a few in mind!

More posts to come, just have to venture out to make more!
Cheer and safe travels everyone!

My Favorite Place

Cinque Terre is one of those places that you go to and never want to leave. The five small towns that dot the coastline of the Liguria region of Italy are probably one of the most hidden, but favorited places to travel to.
If you've been looking for a place with swimming, not many or no tourists, and a relaxing lifestyle in a quaint town, you've found it.

When I traveled here, we stayed in the city of Riomaggiore. This town was exactly what we needed to relax and then to have more adventures.

Since this is one of 5 towns within this Cinque Terre area, it was on the end of it, which meant we could get from one to the other pretty easily.
We spent one day hiking from here to the other end (through all these cities) of Vernazza, where we ended with swimming and a quick train ride back.

The next day we hiked the opposite direction, away from Vernazza and the rest, our end spot was Porto Venere, where we caught a boat ride back to where we were staying.

Both hikes were very manageable and fairly easy to do, although I would say to keep a buddy with you, because hiking alone can be a bit confusing. I did get lost on a couple occasions because I'm a slow hiker and got left behind. All in all though, I got back and there was no harm done.

The sites through the hike are gorgeous and worth taking your time anyways! I mean, it's Italy!
Hiking through some precariously placed vineyards, rocky outcroppings, and tree covered paths, it was a great experience.

We also spent 4th of July here, which was fun in itself! In Riomaggiore, the central bar is actually run and owned by Americans (if I remember correctly) and they helped us to celebrate in style! Live music and lots of beer for the chaperones (no we were not allowed to drink on this trip, only sporadically in Belgium and France, with supervision).

I think the best thing about staying here was our rented apartment. It was amazingly airy and we left the windows open a lot. So much space and a kitchen to make food! And the view wasn't half bad either, although we were not right next to the water, it was still awesome.
Although the 114 stairs up to it (yes we counted each stair) was a pain when you're tired.

This is one of my favorite places I've ever been. Everything is just a little bit slower paced. It was relaxed and you got to go and do what you pleased.
The little market shop was perfect to buy food and then go home and cook it. You just can't really beat the small town feel when it has such a great atmosphere.

I would go back in a heartbeat.

Where is your favorite place that you have been?

Cheers and safe travels!